


Rubber Band Man

by Chippita13



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Archery, Gen, M/M, Paranoia, Pranks and Practical Jokes, Steve thinks Tony's finally lost it, Superhusbands, hiding in the air ducts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-10
Updated: 2013-02-10
Packaged: 2017-11-28 20:13:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/678455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chippita13/pseuds/Chippita13
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony is just trying to work on his latest project. Clint has other plans.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Rubber Band Man

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a little drabble I came up with based on a superfamily rp group I'm a part of. I'd been dying for Clint to play this prank on someone and this seemed like the perfect opportunity. I hope you enjoy it!

Tony was going to kill Barton.

All that was left to plan now was how. He could wait till their next mission and hit him with a stray repulsor  beam.  Or he could make Clint some new arrows that were faulty and would blow up before he could fire them.  He just had to make it look like an accident. He was a genius.  He could do that. He scratched absently at the red welt on the back of his neck as he plotted his teammate’s demise.

It had all started that morning. He had been down working in the lab, nothing really out of the ordinary. Just working on a new diagnostic software that he could put in the new Stark Tech prototypes. Something that would discover when there was a problem or when there may be a problem and fix it before the user ever had to experience said problem.  He was hunched over his work bench, typing away lines of code with the type of focus that blocked out the rest of the world around him when he heard a **“SNAP!”** and felt a sharp pain in the back of his neck. He sprang up with an undignified yelp, hand flying to cover the stinging skin already beginning to swell beneath his fingers. He looked around, trying to figure out what had happened. He looked all around the lab but couldn’t find anything that made sense. Besides he was the only person down here.

He went back to work, a little paranoid now, pausing to look around every few minutes. After a while he began to relax, falling easily back into his focused state . Another 20 minutes of silence passed like that before he heard the same warning **“SNAP!”** and was again met with a painful stinging sensation on the back of his neck, mere centimeters from the first. This time he jumped out of his chair and spun around, annoyed and determined to find the culprit behind whatever was happening here. He looked down at his feet where he found two rubber bands laying on the ground. “Oh. So you think this is funny do you?” He asked, looking around the room, unsure where the shots had originated from. 

It was Clint. It had to be Clint. This sort of idiotic prank was exactly the kind of thing he’d pull. Besides, the precision of hitting him in the neck both times….it all screamed Hawkeye. “I’m on to you Barton.” He called out before he stalked out of the lab, muttering to himself. He would just relocate himself. Find a nice open space where he could see Clint coming from any angle and he wasn’t so lost in thought. He’d go see what Steve was doing. He was always complaining how Tony never ate lunch when he was working on a project. Maybe he’d see if Steve wanted to get something to eat.

He found Steve in the living room reading a book. An actual book, with paper and binding. God he loved this man. He snuck up behind him and wrapped his arms around Steve’s neck, kissing his jaw as he marked the page and closed the book.

“Hey, what are you doing out of the lab? I thought you had a…thing?” Steve asked, never able to remember the technical names for the things Tony was working on. 

He shrugged lightly, moving around the couch to stand in front of Steve.  If he was in front of him, Steve would see if anyone snuck up behind him while he wasn’t looking. It was a foolproof security system. “I do, but you’re always bugging me to eat and stuff, so….I thought I could take a break.”

Steve eyed him for a moment suspiciously but broke out into a grin seconds later, apparently pleased enough with Tony’s decision that he didn’t want to examine it too closely. “Great!” He said, pushing himself up off the couch. “I was just about to make lunch, actually.” He added, smiling at Tony as he made his way to the kitchen.  Messing with Tony in the lab was one thing, but screwing with him in front of Steve was something else. Tony figured he was probably safe out here under the protection of his big, strong husband. He smiled triumphantly, watching Steve walk into the kitchen and following lazily behind.

**“SNAP!”**

He hadn’t even been standing still this time and the rubber band had still managed to hit him in the back of the neck, this time directly on top of one of the pre-existing welts. He spun around on the spot but still couldn’t find any sign of the archer.  He went back and began searching around the room, looking behind furniture, under the couch, on top of the bookcase. Finally he heard Steve call from the kitchen and abandoned the search, covering the back of his neck with both hands as he walked to the kitchen.

Steve already had a plate bearing a BLT waiting for Tony at the table (the man was well aware of Tony’s love for bacon) and was sitting down with his own as Tony shuffled in.  He watched with a curious expression as Tony made his way to the table and sat down across from him, using his foot to pull his chair out as his hands were still busy protecting his neck. He finally plopped down in his chair and quickly gazed around the room, eyes darting from corner to corner, checking that the coast was clear before he finally took his hands away to pick up his sandwich.

“Uh….Tony? Is everything alright?” Steve asked, eyeing Tony with a concerned expression.  Tony wasn’t about to go running to cap to tattle that Clint wouldn’t play nice so he squared his shoulders, smiling across to his husband as he swallowed the first bite of his BLT.

“Yep, peachy. Thanks for lunch. The bacon’s great.” He said cheerfully before taking another large bite out of his sandwich.

They passed the rest of lunch like this, talking idly between bites. Tony couldn’t help but to jump at every little sound, head swiveling around, desperate to catch Barton in the act. Steve would follow his gaze before turning back to look at him suspiciously as he chewed a bite of his sandwich. Now that Tony was looking for it he was sure he could hear chuckling somewhere behind him.  He spun around only to see the wall. He quickly turned back to look at Steve. “Tell me you heard that!”

“Heard what?” Steve asked, looking at Tony like he had grown two heads.

“The laughing!” Tony answered indignantly. He was not crazy. It was not his fault he was being toyed with.

Steve frowned at him from across the table.  “Are you sure you’re feeling okay Tony?” He asked, but before Tony could answer he added. “You know, you really do need to get more sleep. You push yourself too hard.” Tony was just opening his mouth to argue that he was FINE! This was all Barton’s fault. But Steve sighed and pushed himself away from the table. “I’m sorry. I promised I’d meet Clint in the gym today so we could spar. I really have to go.”

He walked over and placed a chaste kiss against Tony’s hair as he sat there flabbergasted. He was being ditched. So his husband could hang out with the enemy! He watched Steve leave, sinking lower into his chair and grumbling under his breath. “Traitor….” He said, crossing his arms over his chest and pouting.

From within the air ducts an archer smiled triumphantly.

**“SNAP!”**


End file.
